


A Twisted Fate

by CWMaddy



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, And no wonder because he always gets screwed over by everyone, But he deserves all the love and happiness, But if he's looking for it here then he won't find it, Cisco just wants to love Hartley, Episode: s01e11 The Sound and the Fury, F/M, Hartley has major trust issues, Hartley is just really unhappy, Hartmon, Hartmon Week 2016, Homophobia, Hurt No Comfort, M/M, POV Third Person Limited, So much angst, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, This just isn't a happy fic guys, Wellsobard Thawne is a dick, alternating POV's, not really anyway, small amount of child abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-23
Updated: 2016-05-23
Packaged: 2018-06-10 04:57:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,654
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6940780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CWMaddy/pseuds/CWMaddy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If this is the life that the universe has set up for him, then Hartley wants no part of it.</p><p>And if this is the soulmate that the universe has paired him with, Cisco wants to know why loving someone has been proven to be so difficult a task.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Twisted Fate

**Author's Note:**

> So the dates and prompts for Hartmon Week 2016 were released about a month and a half ago, and ever since then this monster has manifested and thrived on angst and false hope of romance. I'm sorry for this, there's just so much emotional hurt that our babies are experiencing here, but hope you enjoy my contribution to Hartmon Week day 1 Soulmate AU nonetheless. 
> 
> Also there is an over usage of the word "had" and too many commas in here, but oh well. I think "Behind These Hazel Eyes" by Kelly Clarkson can suffice as a theme song to this.

_Cisco Ramon_. The name was written neatly across the inside of his left wrist, dark gray lettering standing out against his pale freckled arm. Ever since he was a child, Hartley's parents had never allowed him to show his soulmate's name to anyone. He wasn't even allowed to wear short sleeves in public. When learning how to read and write, Hartley practiced his handwriting by spelling out his soulmate's name on any writing surface he could find. That was the first time Hartley was slapped by his mother. He hadn't understood it, not at first. His parents showed off their marks all the time, they never had to be ashamed of the name on their wrists. What was different about him? He eventually learned the answer to this question, he always did. 

Hartley knew from the start that when it came to his flaws, his father would always find one. It was either he wasn't studying enough, or he wasn't making enough friends. He wasn't being social with the party guests, or he needed to shut the hell up because no one wanted to hear a ten year old babble about how he had disproven yet another one of Newton's theories. According to Osgood Rathaway, Hartley was a man made of flaws. And his soul mark was one them. 

"I will not have the public knowing that my son is destined to be with another male! He will be straight, just like every other Rathaway heir!" A five-year-old Hartley heard his father shout to his mother one late afternoon, when he had been listening through the big wooden doors that led to the study. The rays of a setting sun shone through one of the great windows that scattered the hall, illuminating Hartley's pale features– including his young face that read a sorrowful expression. 

"Osgood, it isn't like this is Hartley's fault. He didn't choose his mark, no one did." Rachel, his mother, replied in a placating tone. 

"His choice or not, that name on my boy's wrist is causing Hartley to tarnish this entire family's reputation!" His father snapped back. 

Hartley hadn't understood several of the words exchanged between his parents. But he did know that his father saw him as a disappointment. That night when Hartley bathed, he tried with all of the might in his tiny body to scrub away the name **Cisco Ramon**. He tried until his wrist was raw and bloody, until his fingers ached from clenching the sponge so tightly and tears fell from his bright green eyes because of the burning in his left arm. But no matter what he did, nothing could purge the letters from his skin. 

 

 _Hartley Rathaway_. It was written in sharp, perfect cursive that Cisco hadn't been able to read until third grade. He felt as if the mark had a personality of its own, the perfect loops of the Y's looked empty and cold while the line that struck through the T's were angry and unforgiving. He hoped that this didn't signify the personality of his soulmate. 

Cisco wasn't sure if soulmates were destined, or if they were just suggestions. If he was meant to fall in love with this so called "Hartley", then why did he feel attraction to other people? Certainly he shouldn't feel that way if it would never work, because his soulmate was out there. Somewhere. He spent his entire life making sure he didn't get too romantically attached to anyone, because he knew that it wouldn't end well. 

When he got the job at STAR Labs, he was ecstatic. For some reason he just knew that this was where he would meet his soulmate. This is where the searching would come to a halt. Cisco didn't know what Hartley looked like, but he could picture so vividly the moment that they would lock eyes with each other. It would be the perfect moment. 

But on his first day at STAR, his dreams were shattered. Hartley Rathaway was nothing like he hoped, instead he was bitter and his words were scathing. It was as if Hartley didn't _want_ Cisco to like him. When they locked eyes, Cisco saw cold judgement and hate. When they spoke, Hartley spat remarks that were intended to cut deep. There was no way that this could be the man he was destined to be with. His soul mark had to be no more than a small recommendation sent by the heavens, it couldn't be set in stone. The universe couldn't want Cisco to spend his life with that demon in disguise. 

But when Cisco thought about it later, he knew that soul marks were indeed no joke. He had seen Ronnie's name on Caitlin's wrist, he knew that they were in love. Everyone he had ever met ended up falling in love with their soulmate, and he was expected to do the same. He just didn't know how. 

 

Hartley gave up on the idea of soulmates after he was disowned. His parents didn't take it well when he had said that he was tired of hiding what fate made him out to be. He didn't care that a male's name was on his wrist. His parents, however, didn't agree. After that painful experience, Hartley had decided that he didn't need a soulmate. He was better off alone. Because why would the universe pair him with someone that tore his family apart? What good was a lover if you didn't have parents to support you along the way? 

That's why he didn't make friends with anyone at STAR Labs. People would always end up screwing him over anyway, no matter what he did. When he was alone, he achieved more. All he needed was his work. That's how it had always been. That's how it always would be. And not even Cisco Ramon was going to change his mind. 

Except Cisco was like the sun: lighting the way, but if you stared for too long then you ended up being in more pain than you were in when you started. Hartley wanted to get to know him, he wanted to be loved. He wanted someone. Wells was nice, but there was an underlying tone of manipulation when they were together– like Harrison was always testing him. Hartley had always liked a challenge though, it was what kept him going in the lonely life that he lived. But Cisco made him want something more out of his existence. 

This aggravated him to no end. 

How was it, that a single person made him want to change everything he believed in, all that he stood for? What did that make him? Could a soulmate really mean that much, or was he just losing his mind? Hartley didn't understand. And he didn't like that feeling, not understanding. It was new and uninvited, but he had nobody to go to for help. Not that he would if he were able. 

So Hartley pushed Cisco away. He made comments about everything, what Cisco wore; what he took interest in; how he behaved. Even if he didn't mean it, he said it. He'd never admit to it, but Hartley was afraid of showing that he could care. He hadn't cared in years, he hadn't wanted to. Hadn't had a reason.

But somehow, Cisco became that reason. And for a short period of time, Hartley stopped trying to build up walls in order to keep out Cisco's contagious, hopeful attitude. They had almost been friends. It was an odd sensation, this idea of friendship. Hartley wasn't really sure how to handle such a thing. 

He considered asking Harrison for advice, once upon a time. Hartley knew nothing about the man's personal life, he didn't even know if Harrison had a soulmate. All Wells seemed to own was long sleeved sweaters and suit jackets, so there was no way to tell if there was a name on the doctor's wrist. Was he hiding a name too? ~~Could Harrison be like him?~~ No matter though, because this man was a genius. Surely he would know the answers to Hartley's questions. Hartley had thought that perhaps Harrison could help, could be a companion. He had been wrong. 

Yet again, someone Hartley had trusted, had maybe almost sort of cared about, screwed him over. And all because Hartley wasn't sure if the particle accelerator was safe. Somehow, the simple thought that Harrison's motives could be questionable warranted an immediate job termination. This was what he got for ignoring the rules that he was supposed to always follow. Never get close to anyone. **Ever.** Hartley had forgotten, completely blanked, and it was all because he let himself get caught up in the feeling of being wanted, of happiness. But he knew now, for sure, that he didn't need any of those things. All he needed was his work. Except, now he didn't even have that. 

So there he was again, back to square one. Alone. 

 

Cisco had always joked about how Hartley should just quit if he hated the people at STAR Labs so much. Hartley would just respond with a sneer and hissed response of "You'd like that wouldn't you?" and that would be that. He hadn't expected Hartley to actually leave though. 

He knew more than anyone how much Hartley adored his position at STAR Labs, it seemed to be the only good thing in his life. So he was a little more than surprised when Wells announced one day that Mr. Rathaway's occupation at the Labs had been _discontinued_. No one had seemed to mind, and Wells didn't offer up an explanation. Not even Caitlin seemed too upset about it, just slightly thrown off guard. He was the only one that found it genuinely strange. 

Hartley had been less hostile towards Cisco in the past few weeks, their relationship recently becoming something more than complete and utter loathing. But when Hartley stopped showing up, Cisco realized that he still knew nothing about his soulmate. He didn't know where Hartley lived, he didn't have his phone number, and there was no useful information online that Cisco could use to track down the other man. All he could find was a few articles talking about Hartley being disowned. There was no way for Cisco to find him. 

Cisco had met his soulmate, he had been given his chance to get to know him and to build something that resembled a loving relationship. And he had let it pass him by. He had missed it, and now Hartley was gone. 

Even after the particle accelerator explosion, after he met Barry and started helping him fight crime as The Flash, Cisco would occasionally find himself lightly running his thumb over his left wrist. He would sometimes sit at his desk in the cortex and picture what might've been. If he had maybe tried harder to be Hartley's friend, if he had cared more about what was going on in his soulmate's life. 

He expected any day now for his soul mark to fade away, disappear completely and take with it the memories of one particular Hartley Rathaway. But that didn't make any sense. Just because he had let Hartley go, didn't mean his mark would go too. Ronnie was dead and yet his name, scribbled hastily in big rounded out lettering, still rested on Caitlin's skin. Nothing had changed there. So why would the name on his wrist be any different?

Cisco realized the answer to this question several months later, after Dr. Wells' house was attacked. More than a year had passed since he'd seen Hartley last. 

When he was told about Hartley's return, Cisco suddenly understood. Perhaps the names on peoples' wrists did fade, eventually. But only after there was for sure no way that two soulmates could be reunited. His soul mark was still visible because his time was not yet up, he still had a chance. Maybe Ronnie wasn't gone, or maybe since he and Caitlin had fallen in love the mark was permanent. Maybe soul marks never even went away. The answer to the mystery involving fate and true love didn't matter anyway. All that mattered was that the prodigal son was back, and with him, Cisco's soulmate. 

 

Sometimes, Hartley recalled the stories of soulmates that his mother used to tell him as a young boy. How two people with each others' names on their wrist would meet, fall in love, and live happily ever after. He never believed it was true, but what if it was? What if he could make it happen? After all, didn't he deserve a happy ending, too?

Yes, the answer was that he deserved exactly that. He did deserve to be loved, truly and unconditionally, for once in his life. He might've already had his happy ending if it weren't for Harrison. Because Wells was selfish, a man that couldn't even begin to fathom that he– the most successful entrepreneur of all time _blah blah blah_ – could make a mistake. And it was his fault, after all. Every person who had suffered in Central City that night was because of Harrison and his big head. 

How dare he claim that the explosion was a mistake, even after Hartley had continuously warned him that the accelerator could prove to be faulty? How dare he show his face in public, head held high and satisfied smirk in place? He actually expected to receive sympathy from those who lived in this city, he expected to be absolved, all because he was paralyzed? He assumed that everyone would just get over it simply because he had been confined to a chair? As if he was the only one injured in that disaster of a project. Guess again, Wells. 

However, Hartley realized, he didn't have to suffer anymore. Not by Wells' hands. No, he could just as easily cut his losses with Harrison as the man had done with him. He could put an end to his former mentor and capture his soulmate's heart all in one swish of his hand if he really tried. Because Hartley was a genius, and he didn't need a fraud like Wells to tell him so. 

Hartley began second guessing himself though as he approached Wells' home, even with his sonic gloves at the ready. Perhaps he was getting ahead of himself, maybe this wasn't the way. Was he really ready to be a murderer? But then he saw the man walking around, sauntering even, as if the accelerator had never injured him in the first place. And it came to Hartley then, that perhaps Harrison was never hurt at all. Perhaps his paraplegia was just another one of his endless stream of lies. The fire of hatred that Hartley possessed for Wells raged; fueled by the piercing screeches that constantly rang within his ears. 

And that was when Hartley knew. He knew at that moment, as he ended the phone call with Wells and aimed his gloves to fire his first attack, that he was going to do this. He was going to kill Wells, destroy everything that the man, no, _the monster_ , stood for. And nothing was going to stand in his way. 

 

At first, Cisco wasn't sure if he was happy to have Hartley back. On one hand he was ecstatic, his soulmate had returned and they could have another shot! But on the other hand, he was only back it seemed for revenge. Very violent, very dangerous, revenge. It appeared that Hartley was bitter, extremely so, over the explosion of the particle accelerator. But then again, wasn't everyone a little bitter about it? 

Hartley's words rang true when he said, "We all lost something that night." They were soft, and heartfelt, and Cisco sensed more emotion in those 6 words than he'd ever heard in anything Hartley had ever said to him. And was it safe to say that Hartley was staring straight at him when he said them? Was it just Cisco giving off false hope when he thought that Hartley's sarcasm was less burning than it was in the past? 

There was no time to ponder about it now. Cisco had to study some gloves, Harrison had to have a chit chat with his former protégé, Caitlin had to do....whatever it is that Caitlin was doing, and Barry had a coffee date with Iris. _It's not a date, Cisco, we're just friends._ Cisco didn't miss the lingering brush of Barry's fingers against his own left wrist, one covered by a long sleeved gray cardigan. A cardigan that hid a blank wrist, one without a soul mark in sight. 

He kept pushing the thoughts of his possible relationship with Hartley aside, for there was too much to do, too many questions that needed answering. Cisco knew that his skills in procrastination would come in handy one day. And his anger towards Wells and the man's secretive nature was also making it easier to distract himself from Hartley's smooth voice, his adorable dimples, his— focus, Cisco. _focus focus focus_. 

Then Hartley escaped from his cell, and Cisco had to put all of his attention back on that genius little demon of a man, because Hartley demanded a dramatic exit. He sprinted all the way to the pipeline doors, only to get blasted across the room by nothing other than an explosion triggered by Yours Truly. Cisco was only granted a few more seconds of consciousness after that, and those were filled with Hartley's faraway yet still unmistakably cruel features. And he realized then that Hartley wasn't there for him. He never was. But as he lost the battle against darkness, Cisco told himself that no one could say that he didn't try.

 

As Hartley stumbled his way through the dust and debris that the explosion had left strewn about, he stopped for a moment to take in the damage he had done. He hadn't meant to get Cisco caught in the disaster, but how was he to know that his soulmate would make such a stupid decision? Running head first into the onslaught of Hartley's escape, bringing nothing with him but the sheer will to protect the man that Hartley oh so loathed. 

He couldn't dwell on that though, not right now. He needed to leave. He didn't have the time to stop and make sure that Cisco was properly tended to. But Hartley knew that the cameras were shorted out, so he spared a short moment to crouch down and caress a gentle thumb over Cisco's forehead to wipe away the trickle of blood that was collecting there. 

Then he saw Harrison lying helplessly on the ground in the hallway, as if he was really paralyzed, and all previous tenderness that Hartley had been holding in his heart was momentarily forgotten. Because in front of him was Harrison Wells, his former mentor and once thought to be close friend. _Liar, fake, master manipulator._ He should have killed him, snapped his neck and let his problems fade away right then and there. But that would've been too quick, too kind. 

Hartley wanted to make Harrison suffer as he had. A swift snap of the neck was far too considerate for what that man truly deserved. And he deserved much worse. Harrison deserved to burn, to be in so much pain that he begged for forgiveness and apologized so vehemently that his voice gave out. So Hartley left him there, helpless and alone in his ever so slowly crumbling empire. Where Harrison expected death, he found Hartley's unforgiving eyes and a series of quiet but still deeply scarring words. 

"Tell me Harrison, am I still your guy?" 

And then Hartley continued on, because he had a mission to complete. His work was not yet done. 

_Would it ever be?_ A voice whispered in his head. _Will anything ever be enough?_ When was he going to realize that destruction wasn't the answer? He didn't need vengeance, he needed love. _You need Cisco._ But that idea was out the window, because he had just rendered Cisco unconscious; had **hurt** his soulmate. 

_You've gone too far._ Said the voice. _You're no better than Wells._ But Hartley wasn't listening. The blaring alarms were just so loud, and the tinnitus in his ears was excruciating, all Hartley could hear was a far away chorus of incoherent voices. 

Maybe if he had been able to pick out what the voice in his head was telling him, he might have stopped. He might've decided that Wells wasn't worth all the destruction, the murders he was committing. Maybe the Flash wouldn't have had to stop him from actually killing anyone, maybe his plans wouldn't have been foiled by the one person he was trying to end so ruthlessly. 

But that was exactly what happened. And as he sat there in his cell once again, staring at his hastily bandaged hands that would no doubt scar just as badly as his butchered soul, listening to Cisco's retreating footsteps, Hartley accepted his failure. And he also realized that the universe was wrong. He and Cisco would never work out. It was so painfully obvious that the man hated him even more now than he had before. Hartley wanted to regret what he did, he wanted to apologize for the pain he'd caused. But he didn't. It wouldn't even matter anyway, everyone he loves always end up leaving him at some point in time. 

Sure, maybe love was like an overly complicated mathematical equation that some pompous asshole left for the next prodigy to figure out. And maybe sometimes love was like a pair of magnetic poles. Sometimes opposites did attract. But other times, love was like a dusty shelf in the back of a Good Will that no one ever visited because it held all of the rejected items. Because nobody wanted a broken toy.

And nobody wanted _Hartley Rathaway_.


End file.
